First Meeting
by mamaXunicorn
Summary: The love story of Sam and Molly is a classic. This is the story of how they met.


Sam stepped into the small little coffee shop on some street in the middle of New York that he couldn't remember the name of. He'd only been in the big apple city for a couple weeks and still hadn't got used to it. He spent most of the time settling into his new apartment with Carl and trying to figure out the subway system from his apartment to the bank and back. Carl seemed to adjust to the city a lot quicker than he did; Carl always seemed to be a bit quicker at him at things. It was with Carl's help that he landed the job at Manhattan bank. Though in the few weeks Sam had been at the job, he seemed to be excelling at it. His boss loved him, his co-workers loved him and he fit right in.

What he didn't fit right into was the swing of the city. The hustle and bustle of hundreds of people heading to work…Sam couldn't even begin to tell you how many times he had nearly been trampled. And Sam considered himself to be a very fit and strong guy and yet he felt just like one of the rats in the alleys, being ignored and pushed aside as if he wasn't important. Carl laughed when he told him all of this one night over a beer at one of the very many bars in New York and said, "Sam, you gotta push right back."

Sam would consider himself an ambitious person. Seeing what he likes and doing anything to get a hold of it but…he wasn't aggressive. He didn't want to push people out of the way regardless of the fact that it was the city's way of life. They didn't care to push you and they didn't care if you pushed right back. But Sam cared – his mother raised him to be a gentleman and where he grew up, if you pushed someone on the street to get out of your way, you were seen as the worst person in the neighborhood.

So no, Sam wouldn't be pushing anyone out of the way.

He grunted as a woman shoved past him to get on the line before him. He stared at the back of her head incredulously but she didn't even bother to turn around and even give him a glance. He sighed and rolled his eyes, wondering if he'd ever get used to it. It took nearly a half an hour to get to the front of the line and he thanked God he left early that morning, heeding Carl's warning.

He ordered his coffee and a small muffin to go and waited off to the side until it was ready. He crossed his arms over his chest and observed all of the people in the crowded coffee shop. He was amazed at the variety of different types of people that could be in one little shop…different skin colors, different hair colors, different hair styles, piercings, tattoos, business suits and skimpy skirts.

And among that crowd of people, he spotted one that caught his eye. In fact, it was more like one of those cheesy romance movies where he spotted her and the whole rest of the room disappeared.

She was sitting at one of the tables, her wavy blonde hair tied loosely behind her back, a few loose strands framing her face. She was dressed in a gray t-shirt and ripped jeans, reading the newspaper laid out on the table in front of her, occasionally bringing small pieces of a muffin to her mouth. She was completely at ease in the middle of all the chaos, seeming completely obvious to the noise and crowd that was putting him on edge. Obviously a native, he thought. He watched her every move, every turn of her head, every flicker of her eyes as she read, every curl of her fingers, every tap of her foot against the floor…he was mesmerized.

He jumped at a hard poke into his shoulder and turned around, wide-eyed. The man behind the counter was giving him a sour look while holding up a small bag and a Styrofoam cup. He smiled sheepishly and took his goods from the man, tucking the bag under his arm and holding the coffee in his right hand. He moved away from the counter and his eyes found their way back to her.

She hadn't moved and she seemed in no hurry to do so either, another thing that set her apart from everybody else in the shop. The first being her natural beauty, though that might have only been him noticing. Every other woman in the shop had their clothes pressed and pristine, their hair either neatly pulled back into a perfect and professional up-do or falling neatly upon their shoulders, and their faces were stern, their eyes annoyed as they waited impatiently in line.

But not her. She wore a hint of a smile on her lips as she flipped through the pages, her eyes soft and warm, and her posture proper but relaxed. He'd been there just about a month and he had not seen anyone like that.

He was once again torn from his thoughts at yet another person shoving past. He glanced quickly down at his watch, remembering his purpose in the coffee shop and calculated his time left to make it into work. Once again, he thanked God he had left early.

He let out a breath, summoning up his courage. Yes, he was going to talk to her. How could he not? How could he possibly let an opportunity like this go?

He gripped tightly onto his coffee cup and straightened up, nodding to himself as he walked over to her table. He paused there, opening his mouth to greet her but he found himself speechless. That was a first, he noted. He wondered how long it would take her to notice him there.

With his gaze intently focused on her, he noticed her shoulders finally tense and her hand freeze on the table. Slowly she looked up and his breath caught as he was met with the most gorgeous eyes he'd ever seen.

Her lips pressed together for a moment before she lifted her brow and smiled politely. "Can I help you?"

It took a moment for his brain to register she was actually talking to him and he finally released his breath, searching for his voice. "I uh-I was just- I mean – I…" _Pull it together, Wheat! _"I'm Sam."

She blinked quietly, her arms folding over each other on the table, the corners of her eyes turning up in amusement. "Hello Sam."

He let out a nervous laugh and with his free hand, grabbed the back of the chair opposite her. "Mind if I join you?"

She looked a little bit hesitant but nodded, biting down on her lip softly as she motioned quietly to the open chair.

He pulled out the chair and took a seat, setting down his coffee and the small bag containing his muffin. Once he was settled he looked up to find her eyes on him and his heart fluttered wildly in his chest. He couldn't even remember the last time he felt like this around a woman and he didn't even know this one's name.

She cleared her throat suddenly, ducking her eyes for a moment and he almost swore he saw a tint of red coating her cheeks. "So Sam, what brings you here to my little table?" She smirked at him, her eyes twinkling.

Number three…she was friendly.

He smiled back at her and concentrated on making his voice smooth as he answered. "I'm on my way to work actually. This place looked nice; I thought I'd give it a shot." He paused for a beat and then continued. "I'm new to the city."

She bit down on her lip softly and then her lips curled into a smile that reached her eyes as she leaned back against her chair. "I never would have guessed."

His own smile faltered. "It's that obvious?"

She laughed, a musical sound that sung directly to his heart, and nodded. "Afraid so."

"Damn." He muttered quietly, pressing his lips together.

She laughed again, lighter this time and the smile returned to his lips. "It's not a bad thing." She told him.

"Makes me look like an idiot, I'm sure." He retorted.

"No…" She shook her head with a sweet smile. "The natives are idiots. It's nice to see a change."

He sighed. "So it's always this crazy?"

She pursed her lips and nodded. "Pretty much."

"You don't seem bothered by it."

She shrugged. "I'm used to it. I've lived here my whole life…its what I've always known."

He eyed her for a moment, once again taking in her every detail. "You're different."

She blinked, craning her head towards him. "I'm sorry?"

"I – I mean you seem different than everyone else. Not so cold or rude."

She let a small smile pass her lips. "Not all of us are typical New Yorkers."

He smiled. "Well that is very good to hear."

Her smile widened and he couldn't help but stare. She had to have the most beautiful smile in the world. It was so pure and true and lit up her whole face.

Finally, he had to ask. He had to know. "What's your name?"

Her smile softened and her eyes widened just slightly as if she realized she hadn't told him. "Molly."

_Molly…_He wasn't Tony and it wasn't Maria but it was still the most beautiful sound he ever head.

"Molly." He said aloud, his voice caressing the name and that time he was sure he saw the red tint on her cheeks. A grin spread across his lips and he extended his hand across the small distance of the table. "It's nice to meet you, Molly."

She eyed his open hand for a moment, then her eyes flickered back to his and her eyes twinkled in amusement as she placed her hand into his. "Ditto."

He chuckled softly, his skin tingling as soon as her hand touched his. His fingers curled around her small hand, giving it a light squeeze.

It was then that he caught sight of the watch on his wrist and more importantly the time on the watch on his wrist. The smile dropped off his face and he quickly released her hand, shooting out of his seat.

Molly's smile was also now gone, her brow furrowing and her eyes crinkling in confusion and concern as she watched him, her hand sliding onto her lap.

Seeing her look and kicking himself for being so abrupt, he sent her an apologetic look, swiping his coffee and muffin bag into his hands. "I'm going to be late."

A look of understanding crossed her face and she nodded with a smile. "You better go, then."

He nodded quickly and started to move away from the table, kicking himself again as he realized he hadn't said goodbye. He turned back to her and she watched him in anticipation. "See you around?"

A slow smile lit her face. "Sure."

He once again caught himself lost in her smile and quickly shook himself out of it. "Bye!" He called before rushing out the door, heading in the direction of the bank.

Inside the shop, Molly sat with her hands on her cheeks, feeling the warmth on her own skin. She let out a soft sigh, biting down on her lip, watching where he had disappeared. Her heart pounded wildly against her chest as a belated whisper passed her lips. "Bye…"

Neither of them knew if they would see each other again but both of them knew they wanted to.


End file.
